(10) The Trouble With White Women: A Counterhistory of Feminism by Kyla Schuller (2021, 304 pages) (nonfiction, intersectional feminism). Audiobook. I wanted to read this because I read an interview with the author. Intersectional feminism and the toxic nature of historically white feminism is a topic I have passing familiarity with but I wanted to know more. I found this to be an excellent “101” in intersectional feminism. Schuller walks through the history of American feminism using case studies where she compares the actions & approaches of a white feminist leader or icon with those of a contemporaneous intersectional feminist. If you don’t really know what white feminism or intersectional feminism is or aren’t familiar with the (deeply problematic and harmful) history of white feminism (i.e., what a lot of white ladies just call “feminism”), this is a great and very accessible place to start.
(11) The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward (2021, 335 pages) (genre = dark). Audiobook. Ho-ly shit, guys, I don’t know where to start with this one. It’s very hard to know what to say about this book–even the genre–without getting into spoilers. So let’s just say that there’s a very strange man that lives in kind of a sad house with his cantankerous daughter and a Bible-reading cat. And a new next door neighbor whose little sister disappeared at a nearby lake 11 years ago. And…nothing is exactly what it seems. I am often disappointed when books advertise “so many twists and turns!!” because a lot of times you can see the “twists” coming a mile away. That…was not the case here. It’s hard to get into content warnings without spoilers, but let’s just say it is quite dark in places and I can absolutely see how some people would nope out pretty quickly. But it’s all done in the service of a really rich and earnest story and not shock value.
(12) The Wizard of Oz and Other Narcissists by Eleanor D. Payson (2010, 187 pages) (nonfiction, psychology/self-help). Audiobook. Thankfully I do NOT have any narcissists in my life I have to deal with, but I was a psyche minor and am addicted to advice columns and this is a book that gets recommended a lot to people who have dealt with narcissistic parents/partners/bosses/etc. or are dealing with the fallout of having been harmed by narcissistic relationships in the past. Honestly I just find it fascinating.
(13) We Keep the Dead Close by Becky Cooper (2020, 512 pages) (nonfiction, true crime). Paper book. As a Harvard undergrad, Cooper heard a story: Once there was a female archeology grad student who went on a dig with her advisor and had an affair with him. When he tried to break it off, she threatened to go to his wife and tell her everything. So the professor murdered her, and Harvard covered it up. And then later she learned: Well; maybe. Partly. Maybe?
"You have to remember, he reminded me, that Harvard is older than the U.S. government. You have to remember because Harvard doesn't let you forget."Cooper ultimately devoted the next 10 years of her life to investigating the unsolved murder of firey, mysterious Jane Britton and ultimately writing this book. If you enjoy serial true crime podcasts, this one might be right up your alley.
(14) Darkness My Old Friend by Lisa Unger (2011, 496 pages) (crime/mystery/drama). Audiobook. A small town, an eccentric mine explorer whose mother disappeared years ago and whose hoarder father has just died, a less-than-voluntarily-retired cop beginning to find himself in PI territory, a single mom with a troubled teen daughter, a stay-at-home-mom with an overbearing husband and a step-son whose mother seems to have abandoned him. Oh, and there’s a psychic. Did I mention there’s a psychic? This small-town mystery is more character- than plot-focused and jumps around between a handful of different narrators, all navigating their various intertwining concerns.
This was a new author for me, and while the story was fine enough, it wasn’t really my style. There’s only kind-of-sort-of a mystery to solve, too many of the characters felt one-dimensional, and even those that were a little more complex just weren’t that interesting. The crime/mystery part was barely existent, and I had a hard time feeling invested in the story or caring all that much about what happened. I’d try a couple more by her before giving up, though.
No comments:
Post a Comment